Santos in Oaxaca's Ancient Churches

A study of santos in 16th-century and other churches in Oaxaca, Mexico


By Claire and Richard Stracke
Funded by a grant from the Rockefeller Foundation

In the church of Santa Elena de la Cruz, Xoxocotlán

Angels
Christ: Ecce Homo
Crucifix 1
Crucifix 2
Crucifix 3
Crucifix 4
Our Lady of Mount Carmel
Our Lady of  Sorrows
Our Lady of Sorrows (Soledad)
Our Lady of the Rosary 1 and 2
St. Mary Magdalene: see Our Lady of Sorrows
St. Helena
St. John: see Our Lady of Sorrows
St. Sebastian: see Our Lady of the Rosary
St. Therese of Lisieux
Trinity
Unidentified saint

Other santos not photographed

St. Thérèse of Lisieux

Saint Therese of Lisieux:
The wood, gesso, and paint are visible at a break at the hem of the robe. This is a modern saint (lived 1873-1897), yet the statue is of the same construction as the early santos studied here.

Basis for Identification: Carmelite habit, roses, crucifix.

Site: Church of Santa Elena de la Cruz, Xoxocotlán.

Location: In a glass case along the north wall of the nave (see note).

Media and construction: Wood, gesso, paint.

Size: About 2 feet (60 cm.)

Comparable santos in Oaxaca: We found none.

External Links:
Wikimedia Commons: Statues of St. Thérèse of Lisieux
Wikipedia:
Thérèse of Lisieux
Catholic Encyclopedia: St. Therese of Lisieux

Next: Two angels on the columns that separate the nave from the apse.

Previous santo

Introduction to Xoxocotlán

Santos Home Page

Note: On this site, references to the cardinal directions always assume that the main altar is at the east end of the church, the narthex or entry area at the west end, and the two walls of the nave on the north and south. (The nave is the long central section.) Actual orientations may differ.

The photo shown here is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. You are free to share or remix it on two conditions: first, that you attribute it to the photographers, Claire and Richard Stracke, without implying any approval of your work on their part; second, that if you alter, transform, or build upon this photo, you may distribute the resulting work only under the same or similar license to this one.